Chapter 1355: 113. Fairness

"Sir, you must be that newly arrived Master Enmu."

Jerome stood in the middle of the square, and his presence alone made the surroundings so quiet that even a falling needle could have been heard.

Yet he himself did not look particularly frightening. In fact, judging only from his expression and demeanor, he even seemed quite amiable.

For example, right now, he was smiling as he exchanged pleasantries with Muen.

"I heard long ago that the Enhancement School, which was about to disappear completely into the long river of history, would be receiving a new master. I originally thought it would be yet another foolish and incompetent person, but I didn't expect Master Enmu to appear to possess at least some ability. For the Enhancement School to have waited until a time like this for your return, its luck isn't too bad."

"You flatter me, you flatter me."

Although Muen's persona was that of a cold and ruthless master, since the other party was acting like this, he could only return the smile.

"Master Jerome praises me too highly. I don't have much ability at all."

"If you had no ability, you wouldn't have been able to hang several of my disciples up there and humiliate them. Their strength is enough to defeat some of the weaker masters from certain schools."

Jerome's gaze swept across the statue.

The people who had still been wriggling around immediately froze.

Especially Adno...

Having his teacher witness the most humiliating moment of his life was simply too painful.

If this continued...

He was going to awaken some kind of strange new preference!

Among all of them, only Habakaya continued wriggling and struggling with all his might.

There were advantages to having arrived earlier.

He had already gotten used to this humiliation.

Jerome ignored them and, for the time being, paid no attention to these disgraceful fellows.

After all, they had already embarrassed themselves to this extent. How much more embarrassing could it possibly get?

Dignity that had been lost could simply be reclaimed later.

He had always been tolerant toward his disciples.

But outsiders...

Would absolutely not be allowed to offend them at will!

Thus, his gaze gradually withdrew.

Along with...

The smile at the corner of his mouth.

"There is one thing I don't quite understand... Master Enmu has only just arrived, yet you have already begun acting in such a high-profile manner. For the Enhancement School, which is currently on the verge of being abolished, that does not seem like a particularly good thing."

Jerome lightly tapped his fingers. Like most magic masters, he held a staff that could be used to show off...

That could rapidly channel magical power.

Only, his staff was entirely pale, as though it had been forged from white bone, and it carried an air of chilling slaughter.

"Young people should still learn to keep a lower profile."

"..."

Muen's eyebrows lifted slightly.

This guy...

Had he noticed that something about his age was wrong?

As expected, he wasn't some simple character.

But he was probably only suspicious and hadn't accurately investigated him. Otherwise, if he knew that Muen was even a full generation younger than those disciples of his, he probably wouldn't be reacting like this.

"I have absolutely no idea what Master Jerome is talking about."

Muen continued smiling.

"I merely want to recruit a student so that the Enhancement School can continue to exist. May I ask what exactly is wrong with that?"

"Of course there's nothing wrong with it. That is your freedom, Master Enmu."

"Then..."

"But!"

Jerome's voice suddenly became stern.

A terrifying torrent of magical power swept outward, instantly causing the raging wind across the entire square to abruptly freeze.

The pressure in the air seemed to drop in an instant, and many people suddenly found it difficult to breathe.

Within this terrifying, congealed atmosphere, his cold shout rang out even more clearly.

"To actually use the students of my classroom as banners to advertise your own school... Master Enmu, don't you think your methods have gone a little too far?"

"...Too far?"

Muen naturally wasn't frightened. He casually shrugged.

"Fine, I admit I did make them look pretty embarrassing, but in reality, I didn't truly do anything serious to them, did I? Their injuries are only superficial. They'll be fine after going back and resting for a while. To put it plainly, I merely gave them a small punishment. As for helping us advertise..."

He coughed.

"That was just making use of waste."

"That is exactly the problem! You have no right to punish them!"

"Why not? They were the ones who started causing trouble first. Surely Master Jerome doesn't claim to be unaware of what happened from beginning to end?"

"I know. That is precisely why I say this."

Jerome gave a cold snort, his tone becoming even more aggressive.

"I admit that my students did indeed make a few mistakes. They coveted the treasures of the Enhancement School, showed disrespect toward you, a master recognized by the Origin Tower, and even bullied an old man with mental problems..."

"They were at fault, and they deserved punishment."

"Then you—"

"But!"

Jerome's tone suddenly changed as he shouted:

"Even if my students were at fault, are you saying you bear no responsibility whatsoever? Are you saying your Enhancement School bears no responsibility whatsoever?"

"...Huh?"

In an instant, Muen, who had actually been curious to hear how the other party would justify himself, felt as though his cerebellum had shriveled a little.

"What did you just say?"

"The strong prey upon the weak. That is the law of nature, and even more so within the Origin Tower. If your Enhancement School were not so weak and easy to bully, so feeble and helpless, how would it ever have attracted the covetous gaze of lions like us?"

Jerome raised his head and puffed out his chest...

And even spoke as though he were completely justified!

"All the blame lies with you!"

"..."

Muen's head immediately tilted backward.

At that moment, he nearly thought that the Jerome standing before him wasn't from the Elemental School at all, but from the Illusion School, and that the moment he appeared, he had cast some ultimate illusion spell directly over Muen and inflicted massive mental damage upon him.

But from the corner of his eye, he glanced around and discovered that most of the people in the square had fallen into the exact same stunned state as he had...

Only then did he finally confirm that the world wasn't the one that was wrong.

It was this old man.

"Don't bother trying to reason with an old fossil like this."

Ariel had far more experience dealing with this sort of thing. She sneered.

"They may look powerful, but they've spent their entire lives guarding their own tiny patch of territory. They've been closed off for so long that the logic inside their heads isn't even as good as that of stray dogs by the roadside. At least those dogs can still tell whether a bone is good or bad. A guy like this only knows how to bite wildly without caring about right or wrong the moment his own interests suffer."

"I see. Looks like wasting words really is pointless... In that case, I'll have to trouble you again?"

"This guy looks a little troublesome. I'll give it a try."

Ariel rolled up her sleeves and skipped forward, a sweet smile appearing on her little face. She remained as adorable as ever.

"Hm?"

Jerome's gaze immediately shifted. His cloudy eyes locked onto Ariel, uncertainty and suspicion appearing across his face.

Strange.

This Master Enmu, facing him, wasn't choosing to act personally, but was actually letting this flat—

"Teacher!"

From atop the statue, Habakaya, who had spent ages wriggling around, finally managed to free his mouth from its restraints and hurriedly shouted in anxiety:

"Be careful! There's a trick!"

"Hm?"

Countless gazes once again converged on Habakaya.

Although he was already in the most humiliating state imaginable, he still had to become the center of everyone's attention again.

Habakaya felt as though he were being publicly executed.

But at a time like this, he could no longer care about any of that. He shouted loudly:

"That woman... there's something strange about her! She is definitely not simply Master Enmu's disciple! She..."

Her strength was terrifying, her appearance was cute, but inside she was a demon. At the same time, she openly flirted with that Enmu in public, the two of them shamelessly entangled in passion, completely violating the ethics expected between teacher and student...

Most importantly, never call her flat-chested!

Countless words spun around inside Habakaya's throat, on the verge of bursting out.

But Ariel once again flicked a finger and sealed his mouth shut.

"What are you talking about?"

Ariel acted cute, speaking pitifully.

"I'm merely an innocent and adorable beautiful girl under Master Enmu, you know. A harmless little white rabbit who couldn't hurt a person or an animal."

"Ugh..."

'What are you throwing up for?!'

At lightning speed, Ariel whipped her head around and glared at a certain someone, then immediately resumed her adorable pose.

But Jerome seemed to have already realized something.

His gaze repeatedly swept across Ariel, uncertainty flickering within his cloudy eyes.

There was something wrong with his logic.

But there was nothing wrong with his brain.

Why had Habakaya suddenly said something like that?

He might not have been particularly intelligent, but there was absolutely no doubt when it came to his loyalty. Otherwise, Jerome would never have placed so much effort into cultivating him.

...That's right!

A flash of realization struck Jerome.

The Enhancement School suddenly producing such an overwhelmingly strong student was suspicious to begin with. After all, this path of advancement had already been severed. No matter how one thought about it, there was no way some genius disciple could suddenly appear.

For this Master Enmu to return at a time like this and bring such a person with him was itself extremely suspicious.

And this girl was clearly not merely a mage.

She practiced both magic and martial arts, an extremely rare combination. Although she had suppressed herself, he could still faintly perceive the terrifying nature of her aura.

With talent like that, it was genuinely difficult to imagine her choosing a school that was already on the verge of destruction.

Most importantly...

From beginning to end, it seemed that this girl had been the one taking action.

Meanwhile, that Master Enmu had yet to reveal even the slightest bit of his own strength.

Taking all of this together...

"I understand."

Jerome suddenly sneered.

"Master Enmu, you truly did come up with quite the plan. To think you would actually try to use such a despicable method to help the Enhancement School cling to its last breath."

"I don't understand what you're talking about?"

Muen was completely baffled.

Despicable?

When had he done anything despicable?

If one really wanted to talk about despicable things...

There was what happened the night before last, when he'd tricked Ariel into doing it herself.

But how could an outsider possibly know about that?

"I already know everything."

Jerome wore the expression of someone who had completely seen through the entire matter.

"There is no need to feel excessively ashamed. Using outside assistance to create a false show of strength is a method other schools have used before."

"Huh?"

Muen remained confused.

A false show of strength?

Was there one?

Hadn't they actually been restraining themselves quite a bit?

As for outside assistance...

What nonsense.

He possessed the school emblem and was the legitimate master of the Enhancement School.

Even if they dug the First Master himself out of whatever grave he was buried in, right now, that man couldn't possibly be more legitimate than Muen!

"In any case... tell that girl to step down. As a master of the Origin Tower, doing something so disgraceful will only make people look down on you."

Jerome spoke lightly, yet every word pressed closer.

"Or perhaps you're willing to apologize for what you've done and pay a small price for it? For example... that legendary treasure of the Enhancement School? Of course, even if there is no treasure, if you offer something of equivalent value, I would be merciful enough to accept your apology."

"..."

Upon hearing this, Muen became even more speechless.

Why had they brought up that supposed treasure again?

If you people can genuinely find some kind of treasure in that place even rats would despise, I'll give it to you myself, all right?

This guy made himself sound so righteous and dignified, but in the end, he was still exactly the same as those students of his.

Birds of a feather truly flocked together.

"Why waste so much time talking nonsense? I don't care about any of that. If he wants to fight—"

"Forget it."

Muen grabbed the impatient Ariel by the back of her collar and lifted her back like a kitten.

"Since he wants a fair battle between masters so badly, I'll satisfy him."

"Eh? Are you sure?"

Ariel turned her head, her tone filled with doubt.

If you're the one fighting, won't your disguise be exposed?

"Of course I'm sure. Not only can I do it, everything is still within my calculations."

Muen rested both hands lightly atop his mithril staff, wearing an unfathomable expression.

"Have you forgotten? The second condition I mentioned before for preserving the school—its value. Everything I've done has been meant to highlight that value. Public recruitment, displaying captives... But compared to those things, what could possibly demonstrate our value better than an exhilarating battle between two powerful opponents?

"You mean..." Ariel's eyes widened.

"Exactly!"

Muen suddenly grabbed the cloak on his body and tore it away, revealing what had already been prepared underneath...

A mage's robe!

At the same time, an extraordinarily pure aura of magical power suddenly soared into the sky, causing Jerome, Adno, Habakaya, the countless spectators...

And even Ariel herself...

To abruptly change expression.

"If he wants battle, then I shall battle."

"If he wants fairness, then I shall give him fairness."

"Today, I, a pure magic master, will use the truest and most profound magic to engage him in a battle free of any schemes, any tricks, and any outside factors whatsoever..."

"A battle between mages!"